Featured Artist Karen Lucchese

I grew up on Cleveland’s east side , and along with that came a lot of very cold snowy days for many months on end. No fan of the snow and cold, I spent many hours indoors creating arts and crafts.

My mom was an avid crafter and started us out young creating with stuff we had around the house or could buy on the cheap. We had a big basement with a darkroom and did everything from photography, needle arts, papier mache, stained glass, clay, painting and drawing!

As an adult, I loved doing anything hands on. I began painting and creating mixed media artwork. I married and moved to Florida with husband Phil. I worked for a dentist for 15 years and then one day I just quit my “real job” and went back to my creative roots faux finishing and painting murals for customers in the Tampa Bay area. It was a leap of faith, and I’m sure there were many folks that thought I was crazy but I knew I had to do something creative. I felt like I was drowning in mediocrity.

I loved painting murals and creating for clients but began to transition to painting small pieces of artwork that eventually turned into “collections” of artwork. I have recently begun to show my work at wholesale gift shows and have received an overwhelming response. I have launched a line of greeting cards with my illustrations called “Chicks of a Feather.” I am now selling in many retail outlets and have been getting attention from some large retailers. I also have a new collection called “ Inspired Ink” that is appealing to the tween and teen markets.

I don’t think I will ever stop creating new art. There is inspiration everywhere. I find words, gardens, children and animals to be a constant source of inspiration.

I happy live with my husband, two kids and five rescue pets in Tampa, Florida. I have a wonderful home studio where I can go whenever inspiration hits and create, create, create!